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Show 28 Two miles farther; down the McElmo comes in at nearly right angles from the east, and upon the point of the in& sa included within the angle thus formed by the two canons or valleys- we cannot call them streams- are a group of ruins similar to ones above, but much less regularly built. An interesting inscription occurs upon the under face of a large rock that supports a ruin, covering some GO square feet of surface; animals resembling goats, lizards, human figures, and many huroglyphicaly signs abound. While sketching these our attention was called to the top of the in& ia by Mr. Holmes ( who has accompanied us thus far with his division on his way to the San Juan, and who had ascended to the summit for the purpose of sketching,) to some very interesting remains he Kad discovered there. The perpendicular scarp of the m£ sa ran around very regularly, 50 to 100 feet in height, the talus sloping down at a steep angle. On cavelike benches at the foot of the scarp, is a row of rock shelters, much ruined, in one of which was found a very perfect polished stone implement. Gaining the top with some difficulty, we found a perfectly flat surface, 100 yards in width by about 200 in length, separated from the main plateau by a narrow neck, across which a wall had been thrown, but now nearly leveled. Very nearly the entire space fenced in by this wall was covered by an extended series of small squares, formed by thin slabs of sand- rock set up edgewise. ( Fig. 3, Plate 20.) All were uniformly about 3 by 5 feet square, arranged in rows, two and three deep, and adjusted to various points of the compass, but there were also a few circles disposed irregularly about the inclosed area, each about 20 feet in diameter, and formed of these same squares, leaving a circular space of 10 feet diameter in the center. These squares occur indiscriminately over the whole region that has come under our observation, upon the m6sa tops and in the valleys, all of the same general shape and size, very seldom accompanied by even the faintest indication of a mound- like character, but nearly always in groups. We have always supposed them to be graves, but have not as yet found any evidence that would prove them such. Some that we excavated to a depth of 5 and 6 feet, into a solid earth that had never been disturbed, rewarded us with not the faintest vestige of any remains, excepting, in nearly every case, a thin scattered layer of bits of charcoal from 6 to 18 inches beneath the surface. In one instance, near the M6sa Verde, the upright slabs of rock which inclosed such a square were sunk 2 feet into the earth and projected 6 inches above it. Iu another, was found a mass of chan- ed matter that promised to throw some light upon the subject, but a chemical analysis by Dr. Endlich proved it to be simply charred juniper-wood, without perceptible admixture of animal matter. Iu the present instance, as the soil was thin and sandy, in some places blown entirely off, leaving the bare bed- rottk exposed, we excavated several of these with pick and shovel, there being only from 12 to 18 inches of earth to remove, but in no case finding anything more than the scattered charcoal spoken of above. In some, the earth was calcined, as though a fire had been made within them, while in others there was no vestige of a fire beyond the presence of the charcoal. The question very naturally arises as to whether they might not have been cremation is ts, a supposition that would have some appearance of likelihood, could we but find any trace of human remains among the bits of charred wood. Scattered over the whole surface of this m6sa were a great many flint- chip-pings, from among which we picked up a number of very beautiful arrow-points. As the summit commands a wide sweep of country, it is not unlikely that sentries of old beguiled their tedious watch with arrow-making. * |
